


Dracula's Rose

by Vampyrsbride



Category: Dracula (TV 2020), Dracula - Bram Stoker
Genre: Beauty and the Beast Elements, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Fantasy, Gothic, Horror, prisoner/master, servant/master, sort of lol - Freeform, vampire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:20:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28424622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vampyrsbride/pseuds/Vampyrsbride
Summary: Rose runs away the night before her arranged marriage, and after coming upon an old castle in the Carpathian mountains outside of her hometown village in Romania, she learns that the tales she was told of Count Dracula as a child were more than just stories. What happens when she meets Dracula face-to-face, and what will she do as she gets to know the man behind the beast?
Relationships: Dracula/Original Female Character(s), dracula/OFC
Comments: 28
Kudos: 50





	1. Take Me Away

Romania, 1897  
I sighed as I looked to my reflection in my dresser’s mirror, seated on a cushioned bench as my mother stood behind me and carefully brushed through my long, chestnut hair with a comb. It was nearing nine o’clock, the moon shining through the open window of my bedchamber, but I dreaded the thought of going to sleep, as it meant waking up to the day to come.

“Are you excited for your big day tomorrow, my dear Rose? I’m sure Thomas is ecstatic to be wed,” my mother broke the silence. I looked down to my hands, fidgeting with them in my lap as I racked my brain for a response. I straightened out my nightgown, dusting it off with my hands and trying to keep my emotions in check.

“I am afraid, quite honestly. I don’t wish to wed without a choice in the matter,” I confessed, and I was sure that my mother had long since tired of my resistance to the arranged marriage. She stopped brushing my hair, meeting my gaze in the mirror, before slowly starting to brush again.

“Well, the deal was that you find a husband before your twenty-first year, or we will arrange a marriage for you. You did not fulfill your end, so we found you a husband. A rich one at that,” my mother replied, her irritation bleeding into her tone as she pulled the candle on the dresser closer for better lighting in the otherwise dim space. Her eyesight had weakened over the years, and it seemed that she would bring the candle a hair closer each time she would come in to brush my hair.

“He could possess all the riches of the world and it would not change how I feel,” I shot back coldly. “I did not consent to this marriage, I do not want it.”

“You cannot live with your father and I forever,” my mother told me, finished with her brushing as she set down the comb on my dresser and moved so that she was standing in my line of sight. Quite honestly, I didn’t know why she continued the practice of brushing my hair each night. I was no longer a child, and she was always angry with me for something, so this uncharacteristically intimate act did nothing but make me a bit uneasy when it was carried out. “Marriage is financial and political. That is all it has ever been. You do not get to be the exception because you don’t desire it. Marrying Thomas will give us the funds we need to finally get out of this lower-class nightmare. You will wed tomorrow, and you will do so with a smile on your face. I’m sure you’ll grow to love him over time.”

“Right, you mean the way you and father have grown to have such a perfect marriage after your arranged wedding?” I spat back sarcastically, not meeting her gaze. I was suddenly struck hard on the cheek by my mother, the skin where her hand had come into contact immediately stinging.

“How dare you?! I shall be glad to see you off tomorrow, there hasn’t been a peaceful moment in this house for years,” she exclaimed. I held my cheek as a tear spilled onto it. “Get to bed. This instant. And do not wake up even a minute late or you will be punished.”

With that, she walked out of my bedroom, shutting the door behind her with more force than was needed. I clenched my teeth as I walked over to the open window. I looked out into the black night, allowing my tears to flow freely as the cool breeze brushed across my skin.

I closed my eyes as I focused on the comforting touch of the wind, feeling it move strands of my hair delicately against my face. I felt more trapped than ever before, breathing shakily as I tried to fight back the panic that was looming ever closer in the back of my mind. I simply could not understand why I had no say in my own life, my own future. Thomas was of no interest to me, and it was clear that I would be nothing but a burden if I were to be his wife. I did not want to be a housewife, and did not want children of my own, quite honestly, but it was as though I were being forced into the opposite of my wishes for the sake of money and status.

It was moments like these in which I wished that the stories I used to hear as a child were true. I remembered the nights where I would stay up late as my governess, Florence, told me wild stories of ancient princes, and tales of women who got to go on fantastic adventures of their own. One of my favorite stories was that of Count Dracula. Florence told me that there was once a Count who lived deep in the Carpathian mountains, cursed with the fangs of a wolf, with red eyes like a monster, who could turn into both wolf and bat, and who drank the blood of the ones who found him. She explained how the great Count would be defeated by God and the cross, and that our Lord would save us from all evils, perils, and hardships like that of the demon Count. For some reason, though, the thought of the Count did not scare me. After all, if he ever did exist as a real person, he was long gone by now. But my governess had always told the story of a soulless monster and an enemy of Christ- she never explained any further who this Count, this creature, really was. I merely knew that if God was on the side of the ones who were forcing me into a marriage, into a life I desperately did not want, that maybe this Count was not the one to be so feared.

I opened my eyes once more, looking up at the full moon with a heavy exhale. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the silhouette of a bat against the light of the moon, flying quickly through the night sky and disappearing almost as quickly as it had come into view. I looked into the distance, barely able to make out the Carpathian mountaintops. A castle sat on the farthest mountain, the one that Florence said used to belong to Dracula himself. It was then that I realized that I did in fact have a way out of tomorrow’s marriage ceremony- I simply needed to disappear before sunrise.


	2. Midnight Runaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose finds a means of escape, making her way further north- in the exact direction of Castle Dracula.

I had managed to quickly change from my evening gown and into the lightest dress I owned- I figured that it would be best to have as little weight as possible in my clothing if I were trying to leave fast. It was a blush colored dress with off-the-shoulder sleeves, which technically did not cover as much of my clavicle and shoulders as an average gown should. I topped it off with a shawl to make up for some coverage, as the nights in Romania were almost always too cold for my comfort. I did not bother to style my hair, though it was deemed socially inappropriate for a woman to have her hair completely natural and devoid of any effort of upkeep. Instead, I allowed it to flow past my shoulders in its natural pattern of soft, dark waves, and slipped into my best walking shoes.

The only thing I bothered to take with me was a small coin purse with enough money inside to get me out of town, and to travel away from this part of Europe if it came to that. Glancing at the clock that hung on the wall near my bedside table, my heart skipped when I saw that I only had twenty minutes to get to the nearby stage stop before they closed for the night. I grabbed my purse, fastening the wrist strap so that I did not have to hold it in hand.

I knew that I would be easily compromised if I tried to leave through the front door of the house, so I figured it best to try and climb out my bedchamber’s window. I braced my hands on the windowsill, thankful that it wasn’t terribly high off the ground. I was already benefiting from the decision to wear a light dress, as well as foregoing my underskirts and crinoline, because it was a fairly easy task to swing my legs over the ledge. I looked down, and promptly pushed myself from the window, landing rather easily with both feet on the damp ground.

Peering down the road, I was glad that there were very few townspeople out walking, so I did not worry that anybody had seen my rather strange exit from the house. I nonchalantly walked over to the pavement, and began a brisk walk down the street. I could see the nearest stage station adjacent to a small shop on the street corner. I began to walk a bit more quickly, not bothering to look and see if I was garnering attention from others, yet trying to remain discreet all the same.

After maybe two or three minutes, I had finally reached the stage station, and was very relieved at the site of a coach parked next to a streetlamp. I approached the cab driver, who sat with horse reins in one hand and a pipe in the other, the warm light from the streetlamp casting harsh shadows on his fairly youthful visage.

“Are you still open?” I asked, a bit winded from my determined walk to get there. “I need to go somewhere.”

“I just so happen to have time for one more drive,” the man replied, much to my relief. “Where to?”

I looked behind me, and studied the distant Carpathian mountains again. I noticed the castle from my governess’s nighttime tales of the vampire Count, and felt that somehow, the old and forgotten place was calling to me.

“How far north can you go?” I inquired, whipping my head around to face the man once more.

“Farthest I go is the Crown Inn and Tavern. It’s a little over halfway through the mountains,” he explained, bringing his pipe to his lips for a puff.

“Then I need to go there,” I answered.

“It’s a far ride for a stagecoach. Have you the funds for such a trip?” the man wondered, blowing smoke out under his breath.

“Yes, yes I’ll pay you handsomely. Please let us depart, and kindly do not linger here any longer than need be,” I said a bit impatiently.

“Well alright, then, get in,” the driver told me, nodding his head to the coach door. I thanked him quickly, wasting no time in pulling open the stagecoach's ornate wooden door and climbing inside. Closing it behind me, I adjusted myself into the cushioned velvet seat. I heard the whip of the reins, and let out a breath that I had not realized was being held, as the wheels began to turn and the horses started off.

. . .

It had been about an hour of riding silently, the tension in my body leaving more with every meter we traveled. I was fighting the exhaustion that threatened to take over, and tried to focus on the landscape around me. I had never actually been through the mountains, despite living rather close to them for as long as I could remember.

However, a new anxiety had begun to come forth just as the last one of escape had begun to dwindle. Where would I go? I could not stay at this inn forever, and deep down I knew that I had decided upon this route because of the stories from my childhood being echoed in the castle that loomed ever in the distance ahead. How I wished to see it with my own eyes, instead of merely in my imagination. But it was most probably nothing more than a crumbling echo of the fortress it must have been in the days of old- the days in which Dracula lived there, according to the legends.

I didn’t know what I expected to find upon reaching the castle, maybe something that was just a place of solace and peace while I could get my bearings as to where to go for a more permanent stay. I had always wanted to see Paris. Maybe London? I had certainly brought the money for a train or ship to take me to such far away places.

Before I had come any further in what little plan I had, the stagecoach came to a rolling stop. We had finally arrived at the Crown Inn and Tavern. I attempted to shake off the tiredness that had crept into my eyes, before opening the door and exiting the coach.

“Thank you so much for going to the trouble of such an excursion,” I told the driver, opening my small purse. I dug out a substantial sum of money, handing it to him with as genuine a smile that I could muster in the moment.

“Thank you for the tip, miss. Enjoy your stay,” he responded. I gave him a quick nod, before turning away and starting toward the tavern.

The few wooden stairs on the front porch creaked from the weight of my step as I walked inside, having half a mind to just rest there for the night. But I couldn’t risk staying in such a place that could be easily reached upon the discovery of my absence in the morning- I had to trudge on.

“Excuse me,” I began, approaching the podium at which a clerk was seemingly bored with his current task of cleaning the surface’s top.

“You need a room?” he asked absentmindedly, his energy clearly spent by such a late hour.

“No, thank you. I would like to inquire about any possible transportation that could take me further north,” I answered, biting my lip nervously. I would not feel true relief until I was far away from any possible means of being found.

“You want to go *further* north? This is the furthest place you can be if you’re wanting anything but a ghost town,” he chuckled.

“I just need to get through the woods. Once I can reach a clearing, I’ll be fine on my own,” I continued.

“I’m not sure that it’s wise to be on your own in the middle of the night,” he commented, putting down the washrag that he had been using to clean.

“Wise or not, I will be fine,” I repeated with a bit more venom. “Do you have any available transportation? I can pay a good price for it.”

“Well, we aren’t supposed to be out with the stagecoaches at this time of night,” he started. “But if you’re willing to pay extra, I’m sure the boss wouldn’t mind if I took you out there. We could use any extra funds we can get around here.”

“I truly appreciate it,” I breathed with an exasperated smile.

“Come with me, our stagecoach is out back.”


	3. An Unexpected Guest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose finally arrives at the castle, but she doesn’t have much time to look around before finding that she isn’t alone.

I gasped as an abrupt jolt in the stagecoach woke me from my light slumber. I had not meant to fall asleep, but I was rather grateful for the chance of rest, albeit a short amount. The path was bumpy, and I likened it to the jagged rock and the fallen tree branches that littered the trail. I sat up a bit, looking out the window, and squinting as to make out the surrounding woods. It was almost black as pitch, save for the moonlight that outlined the tops of the trees. While it was a bit discerning to be in such a dark place, there was something comforting about the idea of such peace, such freedom from the society and the people that I had always been surrounded by.

I was startled again, however, by the sudden sound of a howling wolf in the distance. Admittedly, it did send a wave of fear through me to think of myself being on my own and vulnerable to such dangerous creatures. I may have been heading to the castle of the most dangerous creature of all, but he had to have been long gone. In fact, it was entirely possible that my governess’s elaborate stories of the supernatural undead were nothing but imaginary, and that this Count had only been human. Or that he did not even exist in the first place.

Unsure as to how much further the woods continued, I leaned up against the window and watched as the rocky mountainside and the trees flew past. The wolves howled once more, but it did not frighten me this time around. Instead, I tried my best to ignore the sound entirely, and looked as far ahead as I could. It seemed that the woods were beginning to grow more sparse, and it instilled a bit of uneasiness in me to know that my time of rest on this carriage ride was limited.

It wasn’t long before the woods opened up completely, and the mountainside was visible in its entirety. The path ahead seemed uneven and rather narrow, but I felt my heart skip a beat when I realized just how close the castle from my precious childhood stories now stood.

After a few minutes of slower driving, the coach was brought to a stop in what was now a thankfully visible part of the mountains. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath in preparation for the next part of my journey, and then made myself hop out of the vehicle.

“Are you sure you’ll be alright? There isn’t anything out here,” the driver wondered, looking around with hesitancy.

“I can handle myself. Don’t worry about me,” I assured him. I then followed on my promise of payment by giving him a nice sum of money, to which his rather tired expression lit up a bit. “Thank you for taking me as far as you have.”

He gave me a smile, nodding once and giving me a wave as I started off on foot. I did not look back as I heard him turn the coach around, and start towards the inn once more. I pulled my shawl tighter around my shoulders as a chill ran through me- I was lucky it had not snowed that night.

I tried to focus on the sound of crunching leaves beneath my feet as a distraction from my growing nervousness. I felt so alone in that moment, and was conflicted in both enjoying the fact that nobody would bother me, as well as a stark vulnerability that I had not experienced before. The path was easier to manage on foot than by carriage, but the temperature of the icy wind was definitely not. I swallowed hard as I continued on, looking up from the concentration I had placed on my steps, and studying the incredible stone castle that loomed closer than ever before.

It had to have been nearing the devil’s hour- three o’clock in the morning, and I admit that I longed for the sunrise to make the landscape feel less menacing. I forced myself to walk more quickly, reminding myself that getting to the castle quicker meant being in a warmer place- though how much warmer, I did not know. As I neared closer I was able to make out more details of the large structure. It was almost medieval in its architectural style, with rather intimidating and sharp towers that seemed to reach into the clouds. Part of me started to panic- what if I couldn’t get inside? What was I to eat and where would I sleep if I could get in? Was there a way to contact anybody as far as finding a more permanent place to stay somewhere abroad?

I pushed down those fears, remembering that I had no place to go but forwards. After a rather long-winded walk through the cold breeze, I had made it to the large iron door that stood defiantly in the center of the ancient castle. Should I knock? Who would even be on the other side to answer?

I decided to try my luck with opening the door myself. I took hold of the metal knocker, and had to use my entire weight to pull it outwards. It was incredibly heavy, but it did in fact open. I pulled it as far open as I could, letting go with a huff and taking a moment to compose myself. It was pitch black from what I could see, but alas I peeked my head in.

“H-Hello?” I asked, albeit too quietly for even the ghosts to hear. “Hello?” I called again with more vigor, my voice reverberating through the vast entryway. I received no answer in return. Swallowing hard, I stepped through the doorway. I could not even see my own hand in front of me, it was too dark for anyone to be in there. Instead of fumbling around, I felt for the wall on my left-hand side, and leaned into it slightly as I walked along it. It was still very cold, and very dark, though it seemed as if it were a tad easier to see as I crept onward. I had reached the end of the long entryway and felt the corner of the wall, so I decided to turn and continue to follow it. I was feeling rather anxious at that moment, for it felt like the castle could have been nothing but darkness. But upon turning the corner, I was proven wrong.

There was a dim light glowing at the end of the hallway, and a flickering that suggested it as being a fire.

“Hello?” I tried again, my voice a bit shaky. I took a deep breath as I straightened up, no longer needing to feel along the wall for guidance, as I slowly walked down the hallway. The soft glow of firelight led me into a vast and open area. It was made almost entirely of stone, with a long, stained wooden table taking up the center of the room. There was a large, iron chandelier that hung from the ceiling over the long table, and it looked so rusted that I half expected it to come crashing down. A crackling fire blazed on the opposite wall, but any comfort I had from the feeling of warmth was soon dashed, because it meant that there was, in fact, someone else there.

The click of my heels on the stone floor seemed to echo through the room, as it was the only sound, and it felt deafening in comparison to the emptiness of the castle. I looked all around the room in hopes of finding the one responsible for the fire, but I was still alone. I slipped my shawl off of my shoulders, exposing them to the fire as I walked close to it and leaned into its warmth. I closed my eyes as I took a moment to focus on the feeling of heat on bare skin, the room quiet save for the crackling of the fire and my soft breathing.

“I believe you’re supposed to knock.”

I gasped when I heard a full, timbre voice from very close behind me. I wasn’t even spared the time to turn around and see who the voice belonged to, as I immediately felt a stinging pain in the side of my neck. I tried to cry out, but my voice would not follow my commands. Two strong arms wrapped around my waist that caused a breath to catch in my throat. Low moans came from the culprit, and I could feel sharp teeth tearing deeper at my skin. My vision was becoming blurry and doubled, and my breathing labored. My knees buckled, but the rock-hard embrace of arms around me kept me from falling to the ground.

“Mmm, I haven’t tasted blood like this in a long time,” growled the voice in my ear before teeth cut into skin once more. But that was all I remembered before everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it was a bit of a long-winded intro before she actually found Dracula, but things will definitely pick up from here! This is my first Dracula fic, and feedback/suggestions are always welcome!


	4. Prisoner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose wakes up in a prison cell, and finally meets the mysterious Count Dracula.

I slowly blinked my eyes open, a deep exhale passing my lips. My whole body felt incredibly sore, especially my neck. I grunted a bit as I forced myself to sit up from my position on a cold, stone floor. From the looks of it, I was in some sort of prison cell. There was a set of iron bars keeping me from the doorway that seemed to lead out of wherever I was, the rust that plagued them showing their age. I couldn’t focus much on getting my bearings, because the aching soreness in my neck would not subside. I brought my hand up to it, carefully feeling the tender skin. I could feel a newly formed scab, wincing when I accidentally brushed my finger against it with too much force.

“Ow,” I breathed as my brow furrowed. I looked down, and saw that my dress had been stained with a dried trail of blood that went from the neckline and down the skirt.

“Took you long enough to wake,” said the same voice from earlier. I gasped, looking up and meeting the gaze of a handsome stranger. He looked to be middle-aged, very tall and with very black hair. He wore a white undershirt with a charcoal-colored waistcoat, a glass of what I presumed to be wine in hand.

“What did you…?” I trailed off, unable to form a sentence. Clearly I was still coming to.

“Ah- I drank your blood,” he answered bluntly, with a smile that revealed rather sharp teeth. “It was delicious, by the way. Still is.” He lifted his glass to his lips, never breaking eye contact as he took a long sip of the deep crimson liquid that I realized was absolutely not wine.

My eyes widened, and I instinctively shuffled as far away from the front of the prison cell as I could. He chuckled to himself at my reaction.

“See, I thought you weren’t gonna be scared, given that you already know me,” the man commented, studying the glass in his hand before giving me another sharp grin.

“I don’t...know you,” I stammered, my brows knitting together. I rubbed my forehead to try to ease the pounding headache that had suddenly come on.

“Oh, don’t be daft. Those stories your governess would tell? Wild tales of a blood-drinking monster who lived in a castle on a mountaintop?” He mused, lifting his brow as he studied me.

“H-How do you know about that?” I breathed, my heart pounding. The man seemed to focus on me more just as my pulse quickened, as if he could feel it too.

“It was in your blood. Do try to keep up,” he replied with mock impatience.

“So you’re telling me...that you drank- are drinking- my blood, and that it told you about my governess’s stories? That you’re Count Dracula?” I reiterated incredulously, skeptical of such a wild idea.

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you, yes. But you didn’t believe those stories were all made up, otherwise you wouldn’t have come here,” he surmised, taking another sip of his drink. My blood.

“You can’t be,” I whispered, my mind racing and heart pounding.

“Mmmm, but I am,” he countered with another crooked smile. He was enjoying this way too much. “Now, I had every intention of killing you as soon as I found you trespassing, but there’s something about you that’s...unique.”

“How kind of you not to kill me,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes a bit as I sat up more.

“You’re fiery, I like you,” he chuckled. I looked at him without so much as a change in my expression. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of my fear. His black eyes were still reading my every move as I found my way up to finally standing.

“If you don’t want me for blood, then why am I in here?” I questioned, gesturing to the cell he had locked me into.

“It’s not that I don’t want your blood, I will absolutely be having my fill of it. But I am in need of a bride,” he smouldered. Panic immediately set in as I tried to figure out what he meant.

“Bride? You think I’ll marry you?” I snorted in disbelief. The whole reason I had ended up there was because I was trying to avoid marriage. He laughed then, setting his now-empty glass at his feet as he leaned against the iron bars.

“Not like that, Rose,” he began, and a shiver ran down my spine when he said my name. I hated that I noticed how seductive his demeanor was. How captivating his eyes were. “I tried with my dear friend Johnny, but he...didn’t really take to it well. It would be so much easier if you were willing and consenting, but you seem much too stubborn for that.”

“Why would I be willing? You still haven’t even explained what it means,” I shot back. I had a moment in my mind where I wondered why in hell I was even giving my captor any conversation at all.

“Enough questions for now, it’s my turn to ask you a few,” he responded. It was at this moment that he surprised me, as he pulled a brass key out of his waistcoat pocket and unlocked the cell door. 

He walked inside, so tall that he had to duck to go through the doorway, and came to stand only a couple of feet away from me. He then walked right up to me, leaning down so that his face was close to mine as he took a deep inhale. He brought up a large hand to hold my chin, tilting it upward to force our gazes to meet.

“Why did you come here?” he whispered, his gaze piercing into me. He was so close that I could feel his cool breath on my skin, but I was afraid to back away. I noticed a different tone in his voice with this inquiry. He wasn’t mocking or toying with me like he had been in the short time we’d conversed thus far. There was a tiny hint of sincerity in his question, though I don’t think he intended for it to be noticeable.

“I thought you knew from my blood,” I said with a shaky voice. I felt his eyes on me as he focused on each of my facial features.

“I didn’t drain you, so I don’t know everything. Now tell me,” he explained shortly. “People don’t just show up on my doorstep. It’s probably the most unfortunate doorstep to end up on for a human, actually.”

I shook my head a bit as I racked my brain for the answer. I had some reasons, but not a very clear one.

“Why should I tell you?” I replied as I mustered up a bit of courage. He smiled at my response, which only made me more frustrated.

“Because I can kill you in about two seconds if you don’t do exactly what I say,” he purred almost instantly, tightening his grip on my chin. He definitely seemed to want to in this moment, his eyes now trailing to the wound on my neck that he’d given me earlier. In fact, it looked like a crimson red had begun to bleed into the whites of his eyes.

“I thought you wanted to keep me around,” I countered, my voice unfaltering. He groaned under his breath, closing his eyes. It was as if he had forgotten that, like he was in a trance at the thought of my blood. When he opened his eyes, the red that had appeared in them had faded away, and he seemed more...conscious than a moment before.

“So I do. Be stubborn. But I’ll find out anyway. I’ll learn everything about you the more I drink from you,” Dracula told me, releasing his grip and forcing himself to step back from me. “I’ll drink until you’re weak, and again after you recover, and again after that. Until finally you’ll be my bride. Johnny almost made it last time I tried, so I think you’ll turn out just perfect.”

With a last menacing grin, he turned on his heel and walked out of the cell. He said nothing as he pulled the iron door closed, and began to lock it.

“Am I just supposed to sit in this cell?” I dared to ask, just as he was about to leave the room altogether.

“Yes,” he smiled over his shoulder. But then he stopped, and turned back to look at me through the cell bars. “Or…”

“Or?” I prodded, brow furrowed. He looked at me for a moment, clearly pondering something in his head. After a few moments of silence, he finally spoke.

“Tell you what...if you keep this place clean and do what I ask of you...exactly what I ask of you...maybe I would consider letting you sleep in one of the bedrooms,” he explained.

“You want me to be your maid?” I asked, almost laughing as such a ridiculous idea.

“I’ll give you some time to think about it,” he decided, winking at me. “I’ll be back later. I’m sure I’ll be thirsty.”


	5. Making a Choice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose wants to see the castle before she commits to his offer, and Dracula has more charm than she was expecting.

It had been two days since I had arrived at the castle, and I hadn’t seen Dracula since that first night. The only reminder that I wasn’t completely alone was the fact that I would wake up to fruit and bread left in my cell for some sort of sustenance. Dracula caring enough to do that was honestly a surprise, though I quickly dashed away the thought of him being genuine by reminding myself that he was only keeping me alive for my blood. In fact, he had taken more the previous night, and I knew this because fresh blood stained my dress collar when I awoke. Though his vampiric nature scared me, it intrigued me as well, and I missed the company of having someone to talk to- even if he was dangerous.

I was seated up against the stone wall at the back of the cell, bored out of my mind and wondering what time it was. There was one window at the far end of the room, and from the looks of it, sunset was fast approaching. I wondered what the Count had been up to for all this time, and if the stories were true about crucifixes and sunlight being a weakness for him.

He was rather handsome, though I would never say that to his face. Finding him objectively attractive at all made me feel quite conflicted anyway- this was the creature that was drinking my blood. He was no human man. Not to mention, vampires were supposed to be intriguing and seductive, I was sure that this must have been because of his abilities that I was feeling even a little bit drawn to him.

I jolted a bit when I heard a door open, and footsteps echoed as they came down steps that I could not see from my cell. I swallowed hard when the Count glided into my line of sight, stopping just in front of the iron bars and offering a sharp grin.

“I’ve finally caught you when you’re awake,” he commented as he folded his arms.

“Can you blame me for being more drowsy than usual when you’re taking my blood?” I commented, getting up to stand and walk closer to him. I noticed him breathe deeply when I came closer, his pupils dilating as he studied me with great interest.

“You’ve got delicious blood, by the way,” he mentioned. Was that supposed to be a compliment? “Much sweeter than most that I’ve had, and filled with so much information. You’re a smart one.”

I briefly thought to thank him, but instead looked at him coldly- I refused to warm up to this monster.

“Is that what you’re here for?” I asked him.

“For a drink? No, no, I had quite a bit last night. I want to make you last, darling,” he cooed, his voice low and almost hypnotic. “I’m here to see if you’ve come to a decision about my offer.”

His offer. I wasn’t very thrilled at my options, but I knew that I would only go mad staying locked up in that cell.

“Show me first,” I challenged, taking a step closer to the bars, and closer to him.

“Show you?” he wondered with a cocky side smile.

“The castle. I want to see what I’m supposed to be keeping up with before I decide,” I elaborated, trying to ignore how captivating his eyes were.

“I suppose I can manage that,” he decided, a look of amusement flashing in his eyes as he pulled out a brass key and unlocked the cell door. 

I hesitated, unsure of what he wanted me to do at first, before he motioned for me to step out of the cell. I let out a shaky breath as I slowly stepped past him- this caused him to chuckle under his breath.

“After you,” he told me. I turned towards the few stone stairs that led to the wooden door, separating the room from the rest of the castle.

“Is this the cellar or something?” I wondered as I started up the steps. I noticed that my head had begun to spin a bit as I took another step.

“No, it actually is a dungeon. Haven’t used it in centuries though. I do have a ‘wine’ cellar of sorts, I just don’t use it for wine,” he explained, and I heard his shoes on the steps as he followed behind me. 

I suddenly lost my balance, seeing stars as I began to stumble. Before I even had the chance to fall down, I felt the cold, strong grip of Dracula’s rather large hands on either side of my waist. I gasped at his touch, but I was thankful for it as it did help me to regain composure. I tried to ignore the thought that had come to mind at first- that his hands fit perfectly in the dips of my waistline, and that it was the feel of his hands rather than his help to steady me that brought me back to focus.

“Thank you,” I said under my breath. I looked over my shoulder at him as he released his grip on me, not meeting my gaze and rather merely giving me a nod of acknowledgement.

“I may have taken a bit more blood than I should have last night. It’s easy to get carried away,” he said with a light laugh as we started back up the stairs.

“Well, if you’re expecting me to do your chores, I can’t be getting dizzy all the time,” I pointed out, finally coming to the large wooden door at the top of the steps. I wasn’t sure if the door was open, but when I turned the brass handle, it creaked open. It was quite heavy, and I had to lean into it more than I wanted to admit.

Opening the door completely, I saw that Dracula and I had come upon a very long, dark hallway. I squinted to see if I could make anything out, but it was nearly black.

“I forgot how little you humans can see in the dark,” Dracula smirked as he closed the door behind him. “Here.”

I turned to where his voice was coming from, unable to see him in the darkness. I gasped when I felt him link his arm in mine. Though he probably couldn’t see such a subtle change in this lack of light, I felt my cheeks flush, and was thankful for the cover of darkness hiding it. I did not want to give him the ego boost.

“I normally light candles for guests, but it must have slipped my mind this time,” he continued as we started down the hallway. The sound of our simultaneous footsteps echoed down the hall, and it gave an idea of just how vast the castle was. I put my other hand on his arm to hold on a bit more, afraid of another dizzy spell.

“How often do you have...guests? Or rather meals,” I dared to say. This made him laugh again- and it frustrated me that he was so easily amused by such a horrifying implication.

“Not as often as I’d like,” he answered as we turned a corner to another dark space. It was a bit of a relief to see a window towards the end of what was also a long hallway, with moonlight shining beams onto the stone floor. “I tried a few months ago with a very interesting man, I called him Johnny. It was the closest I ever got to a successful bride.”

This perplexed me. Referring to a man as a bride meant that the term had an entirely different meaning than what I had first assumed.

“You still haven’t told me what that means. Being a bride,” I mentioned as we reached the window. It was actually rather large, and the landscape that was visible through it was nothing short of breathtaking. The dim light that came from it allowed me to see that this hallway opened up to the large dining hall with the fireplace that I had found upon first arriving at the castle.

“It means making you a vampire...eventually,” he finally revealed, his rich voice reverberating off the walls. I stopped dead in my tracks, dropping my arm from his. My mind was racing as I turned to face him, thankful that we had made it into a familiar area that was lit enough for me to see his face. He looked unbothered, and this only upset me more.

“You...you want to turn me into that?” I breathed, pointing at him. He smiled, not shying away from showing sharp teeth that were made even more menacing by the shadows from the nearby fireplace.

“As I said before, I planned to kill you as soon as you walked in. But your blood…you’re very intelligent. Stubborn to a fault, but intelligent. I think you’d make it through the change with everything...intact,” he trailed off, his eyes locked onto mine in a way that made a chill run down my spine.

“What if I say no?” I asked, my voice shaking a bit.

“Doesn’t change anything,” he smiled. “I’m afraid you don’t have much of a choice, my dear.”

My breath hitched in my throat as he came a bit closer.

“I think that somewhere, deep down, this is what you wanted,” he continued, his voice nearly a low purr that I tried to tell myself I wasn’t enticed by. “I didn’t seek you out, you came here all on your own. Running from something…”

He had learned more from my blood since we spoke last, but obviously didn’t know the details about my more recent past.

“You could have gone, quite literally, anywhere you wanted. But...you...chose...here…” he spoke each word carefully, just above a whisper as he leaned in so close that his nose nearly brushed against mine. “There has to be a reason.”

I struggled to find the words at first, but something about him was pulling me in and probing me to explain.

“I...I needed somewhere to escape to. I was supposed to get married the next morning,” I responded, studying the lines in the corners of his eyes as they creased in a bit of a smile. “I knew stories of this castle belonging to you, but...they were just stories.”

“Your fiance must be worried,” he said with sinister amusement.

“It was an arranged marriage,” I admitted, not looking Dracula in the eyes.

“Ahh,” he sounded, straightening up as he looked at me. “That’s why you ran.”

I met his gaze, and felt a bit surprised when I saw what seemed to be a bit of sympathy in his eyes. 

“Ran and got trapped,” I said under my breath, eliciting a chuckle from him. A chuckle that I tried not to admit to liking. “I was just coming here to stay long enough to plan out my next move. I thought it had been empty for decades.”

“Then I’m doing a good job of keeping a low profile,” Dracula commented. I couldn’t stop the corners of my mouth from curling a bit. “Is that a smile I see?”

I quickly tried to straighten my expression out.

“Of course not,” I fibbed, crossing my arms and attempting to look stern. I doubted I could do anything to intimidate him though- he was well over a foot taller than I.

“I think it was,” he countered, and his smile was absolutely brilliant. “You know, I’m not trying to *kill* you. I’m trying to give you eternal life...by my side...even plan to go to England in a few weeks, and I expect to have you come with me.”

My heart skipped a beat at the thought of getting to travel somewhere new.

“England?” I asked, and I knew he could sense my curiosity.

“Mhm...I recently acquired a property there. Carfax Abbey, it’s called. My dearly departed friend Johnny was a lawyer, and he helped me with it a while back,” he continued, enjoying that I was actually intrigued by something he was saying.

Eternal life, and a chance to travel for the first time. I knew I was supposed to be angry at him, and I desperately wanted to be...but at the same time, I knew that I wanted to know more about him. If he was the creature, the person, that I was to be around forever, was it a bad idea to begin to get to know him? It probably was, and I told myself that I could absolutely not, under any circumstances, let my guard down or let him in.

“So, have you made up your mind? Spend your days in a cell or cleaning the castle?” he asked, palms folded gracefully.

“Are you not afraid that I’ll try to escape if I’m free to roam around?” I countered, cocking an eyebrow. The lines around his eyes creased in an expression of mock amusement.

“Well, you can try all you like to escape, but you won’t. This castle was designed to get lost in. A labyrinth by a master architect...Petruvio the Widower, he was called. It was his last work before he passed…” Dracula trailed off, alluding to some sort of involvement on his end. It wasn’t hard to put the pieces together. “So no, I’m not afraid at all.”

“If it’s already a maze, then I’d just get lost trying to clean it anyway,” I said in frustration, my eyes narrowing a bit.

“I’ll tell you which rooms to go to, and where to find them. Besides, if you were to get lost, I’d find you rather quickly. I’ve had centuries to memorize every corner of this castle,” he explained, resting his large hands on the back of one of the dining table’s matching hickory chairs.

I didn’t want to say yes and give him any satisfaction, or make him think this was what I wanted at all. But I knew I would rather be free to walk around instead of being locked in a cell.

“Fine,” I decided. “But it’s not my fault if I get lost in this madhouse.”

He grinned at my answer, and I tried to pretend that it didn’t give me a slight feeling of butterflies in my stomach. I did not want to warm up to this...this killer...but I was stuck with him. Even knowing what he was, I was less afraid of him than I was of my arranged marriage, and my arranged life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to make the chapters a bit longer starting with this one! Let me know what you think!


	6. Exploring the Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose begins to tidy up around the castle, but she finds much more than she was expecting when she gets a bit too curious.

After a tour of some of the most significant rooms in the castle, all of which I knew I would forget how to find, Dracula excused himself to part ways from me until the evening. It was almost sunrise, and he had told me that he could not be in the sunlight- something that I didn’t know from the legends back at home. Though it would be nice to have some time to myself, it would likely get a bit boring going all day without any conversation.

I was in the large dining hall once more, and the lack of windows in the room made it hard to believe that the sun had risen. Thankfully, the room was kept lit by a seemingly continuous array of candles and firelight. Dracula had left me a note on a piece of parchment, and I walked over to pick it up off of the tabletop. I was fascinated to see what his handwriting looked like- his lettering was narrow and sharp, but seemed to dance across the page smoothly and in a beautifully stylized way. He had merely written down a list of a few rooms he wanted me to go and tidy up, and much to my relief, he wrote simple instructions on how to get to each one.

‘Large bedchamber- doorway next to fireplace in main room, turn left and left again, second door on right,’ I read as I held the parchment closer to a nearby candle to see it more easily. This didn’t sound too difficult to get to.

There was a feather duster on the table next to where the parchment had been, one that had a golden handle and looked quite antique. Although I was not thrilled to be cleaning up, I was thankful that all had been instructed to do was dust and straighten things up if needed. Part of me wondered why he even wanted me to be doing so, there was no way he used all the rooms in the castle.

I took a deep breath as I folded the paper and tucked it into the neckline of my dress, and took the antique feather duster. I was actually quite tired, as I had already been up for most of the night, but I decided to begin taking care of the list nonetheless. I started over to the doorway that was next to the fireplace, admittedly curious to explore the castle on my own. I vaguely remembered this hallway from Dracula’s brief tour, though the windows were now filling the hallway with much appreciated sunlight. I walked over to the first window, and stopped to look outside. Miles of forest stretched out from this side of the castle, flowing up and down with the varying levels of hills and mountains. It had snowed since I had last looked, and the whole landscape was blanketed in a beautiful layer of crystalline white. I put my hand on the glass, my breath hitching in my throat a bit when I felt how cold the window pane was. I chuckled a bit at my own reaction, before beginning to head down the hallway again.

Two lefts, second door on the right. I reached the end of the hallway and turned the left corner, coming upon a fairly longer hallway. I understood why Dracula had called it a labyrinth- the hallways were all stone from floor to ceiling, and it was easy to mix them up. This one was lined with more windows on the right hand wall, and it was a nice feeling to have the warmth of the sun on my skin so much. There was a painting on the wall that very strongly resembled Dracula, and that must have been at least a few centuries old. He was wearing what looked to be chain mail and a large, blood-red cloak lined with fur. In his left hand, he held a broadsword, and behind him was a horrifying scene of bodies on stakes. It felt unnerving to know that this...this warlord, was the one with whom I was trapped. I knew he was dangerous, but at the same time, this version of him in the painting seemed much more malevolent than the vampire I had become acquainted with.

Reaching the end of this longer hallway, I turned left again, and was relieved to find the second door on the right. The door was closed, but thankfully unlocked, and I turned the brass handle to open it and step inside. The room was quite breathtaking- all the furniture was so ornate that I was sure I could never afford the likes of it in my own lifetime. There was a king-sized bed elevated up on a stone level that was higher than the floor itself. A dusty canopy concealed most of the bed, and the gold reflex in the embroidery of it seemed to sparkle and illuminate the surrounding surfaces. It was fairly dark in the room, save for a large, stained-glass window on the wall opposite the door. This room as a whole seemed to be covered in a layer of dust- Dracula certainly hadn’t used this room in years.

“Why make me clean a room you don’t use?” I sighed under my breath. I noticed a window on the left-hand wall as well, only this one was concealed by a thick, burgundy curtain. Eager for more light, I went over to the other side of the room. The curtains were heavy, and I could see the dust as it gathered up in the air when I began to pull the curtains. I was able to get the curtains drawn, and could now see, even more clearly, the amount of dust and the cobwebbed corners that decorated the room.

I began to dust the nightstands on either side of the large bed, my curiosity sparking at the sight of a few books on one of them. Faust by Goethe, Inferno by Dante, and something very old and in a language I did not recognize. I wondered if they had belonged to Dracula or to someone else, and if he had read them. I straightened up the books, and then moved on to fixing up the writing desk in the corner of the room. It took only a moment to dust off the surface and straighten up a couple of inkwells and quills that were still there waiting for use. Going back over to the bed, I started to fluff the pillows, having to stop for a moment to try and wave away the dust that had come up and into the air from doing so.

The bed did seem rather nice, despite being so old, and the thought of stopping for a rest crossed my mind. After all, I had been sleeping on the floor of a cell since my arrival at the castle, and I’d been awake almost all night. I pulled out the to-do list from where I had tucked it away in the neckline of my dress, wishing I had a change of clothes so that I wasn’t wearing my own dried blood. The list wasn’t all that long, and I decided that I had plenty of time to finally get a bit of sleep.

I climbed onto the bed, chuckling a bit at how much the old wood creaked. I put my list and that old duster on the nightstand next to me. Deciding to forego getting under the covers, I merely laid on my back with my head on the newly-fluffed pillow, and closed my eyes.

. . .

I let out a deep breath as my eyes slowly opened. It took me a moment to come to completely, remembering where I was and the context of my situation. I blinked a few times, and turned my head to look out the window where I had drawn the curtains earlier. The sun had moved from its previous place in the sky, and from the looks of it, it seemed to be mid-afternoon.

I forced myself to sit up, gently using my fingers to comb through my dark hair. It made me think back to the night I left home when my mother did the same. I was a bit surprised to realize that I didn’t miss the people I knew back home, rather I missed things feeling familiar and secure. I hoped that I could feel that again someday, but it seemed almost impossible.

Swinging my legs over the edge of the bed, I hopped onto my feet. Before leaving the room, I decided to close the curtains back up- I figured that someone who can’t be in the sun wouldn’t want curtains open much. I took another look at my to-do list, mindlessly grabbing the ornate feather duster as I walked back out of the bedchamber.

Next on the list was the ‘wine’ cellar. The directions read, in perfect script, “after bedchamber, continue down hallway, turn right at the end...”

Doing as was written, I began to make my way down the hallway, which was definitely colder than it had been earlier in the day. I reached the end of the hallway, and turned the corner to go right. There was a spiral staircase that continued both upwards and downwards. The instructions read to go down them, so I did so. The marble stairs seemed to go on for a long time, and I imagined the countless times over the years that Dracula had used this same staircase to get his ‘wine’...Then I wondered how many people went into the making of his collection, and shuddered at the thought.

The click of my heels echoed off the walls, and I finally reached the last step. I had come to the level of the castle that was below ground, the part that must have been built into the mountain itself. It was quite dark, as there were absolutely no windows on this level- the only light came from any natural sun that made its way down the staircase with me. I squinted as I tried to look around, and was relieved to see a lantern and matchbox on an old wooden chest. I walked through what must have been a storage area of some sort, for there were nothing but boxes in here...boxes of soil.

I was perplexed by the earth-boxes as I reached for the matchbox, striking a single match and lighting the lantern. I put out the match before picking up the lantern, and walked over to the boxes for a better look. Why would Dracula just have multiple boxes of dirt sitting there? Maybe it was something I could ask about the next time I saw him.

The directions on my paper read to go left at the staircase and that the ‘wine’ cellar would be through the wooden door. I held the lantern up as I walked that way, but my attention was averted when I saw a tunnel to my left. It seemed to have been dug into the wall, and into the mountain, as it wasn’t a part of the actual castle. Instead, it was like a small cave of earth and mildew, one that I could not help but get a closer look at. My brow furrowed as I slowly crept down the dank tunnel, my lantern illuminating the dirt and roots around me. I wondered why on earth it was necessary to dig out such a place, when the castle itself was already too big for the Count to keep up with on his own. The tunnel rounded a corner, and then opened into a bigger cave area- one that was filled with even more large boxes. Soil, maybe? No, these boxes were all sealed shut.

I crept over to one, noticing the hammer that had been left on top of it. This box looked quite old though, and seemed to be somewhat cracked open already. I set my lantern down on the damp ground, before moving the hammer aside and getting a firm grip on the lid of the wooden box. As I had suspected, the box was old, and actually rotting, so the lid came off without too much effort. I brushed aside a stray hair that had wandered into my line of sight, before picking up my lantern and peeking inside.

Clothes, a pile of old clothes. It looked to be a silk dress, and on top of it was a collection of photographs from a wedding. In fact, the woman in the photographs was wearing what looked to be the very dress that was in the box. Before having the time to wonder what happened to the woman, I saw the fabric move. I jumped back a bit, standing up straight and looking on with wide eyes. Again, the fabric rustled around, and the box itself creaked. I took a step back.

I watched in horror when I saw long, withered fingers come out of the box to grab the edge of it, followed soon after by a second hand of the same. Slowly, a figure began to emerge. This creature looked like some kind of monster, withered and with rotted skin. This figure was wearing the dress from the photographs, and it’s stringy hair seemed to be in a similar style as that of the photo as well. Then it opened its eyes- its glowing, milky eyes- and stared into my soul.

The creature lifted a pointed finger at me, while simultaneously the box beside it began to open.

I couldn’t process the sound of my own scream, but I remember that I did, my heart racing when a similar figure unfolded its body from the other box and looked over to me. The creatures began to step out of their boxes, so I instantly turned and began to run back the way I came.

They were shouting something at me that I did not understand, and they were fast as well. I ran back into the area with the dirt boxes, and merely kept running ahead, afraid to stop even for a second. I turned into a dark, stone hallway, screaming again as I heard their footsteps following on the different ground. I ran into a dark room- a room that was a dead end. There was some sort of large sarcophagus that took up most of the room, its lid damaged by a crack that went straight down the center of it.

I screamed again as I heard the shouting of those creatures getting closer. Suddenly, the broken lid began to open up from the crack. My pulse was hammering in my heels as I watched a figure in black begin to rise from the coffin, and I felt in that moment that I was truly about to die.

Holding up my lantern, I was surprised when I realized that the figure was my captor. Only Dracula didn’t look like himself. His lips were stained red with blood, and his eyes were a similar crimson color where the whites should have been. His pupils had blown out and he looked at me when I screamed once again at the feeling of a hand grabbing my shoulder. It was one of the creatures, and the other started grabbing at me soon after. My voice was growing hoarse as I cried for help, and Dracula looked at me. His red eyes moved to the creatures, and he began to growl. Slowly, he opened his mouth to reveal piercing sharp teeth, his eyes growing wider. But that was all I remembered before I collapsed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to incorporate some elements from the first episode of the show in this chapter, hope you enjoyed it!


	7. A Different Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose wakes to find that there's more to the mysterious Count Dracula than she had previously thought

My lids slowly opened, my eyes a bit blurred with sleep. My body felt a bit sore, especially a spot on my head- I must have hit it when I fell. I cleared my throat as I shifted from my position on my back to where I was propped up by my elbows. The last I had remembered was being in that dark room with those creatures and Dracula like I’d never seen him. But here I was, waking up in the guest room I had tidied up before. I had no clue how I got there, under the covers as well. The curtains had been reopened, and it was now after sunset. Next to me on the nightstand was a glass of water, and an oil lamp was burning. Even my shoes had been removed, and were placed by the door. I definitely hadn’t been the one to do that.

I sat up completely, and noticed that the desk chair was pulled out of its place. To my surprise, there was a pale blue dress draped across it. It looked to be a bit older, but it was beautiful nonetheless. There was a delicate layer of lace that covered the blue silk as well, with a hug-shoulder neckline and long, fitted sleeves. If I had seen any servants around, I would have assumed one of them had dug it up. But the only other person in the entire castle was Dracula, and as far as I knew, he was not the type to do something so...kind. Had he helped me when I collapsed as well?

My brow furrowed as I pulled back the blankets and carefully came to standing. I went over to the chair, and carefully touched the dress that looked old but perfect in condition. Much nicer than the dresses I had back home. I was thankful that I had the opportunity to finally change out of the ruined dress I had arrived in, and was careful as I began to unlace the back of it. My shoulders were a bit sore, but I tried to pay no mind to it as I shrugged off the old dress. It slipped to the floor, and I stepped out of it, picking up the new gown and turning it over to see how it was done up. However, this one wasn’t a lace-up, rather one I could just pull on. I pulled it over my head and slid my arms into the sleeves. I was glad that it was a decent fit, even somewhat comfortable, and I smoothed it out.

I smiled softly when I noticed a brush that had been left on the desk as well, glad that I could properly comb through my hair. I did so quickly, slipped on my shoes, and then decided to go and see if I could find out more about what I had missed in my time asleep.

Thankfully, I remembered how to get back to the main hall from that guest room, and it didn’t take long for me to do so. I swallowed hard when I saw Dracula there, sitting at the head of the table as he looked at a book. He looked so studious and tidy, a far cry from what he was like when I found him with red eyes and sharp teeth. I realized that I was a bit nervous to go closer and announce my presence. I had always known that he was dangerous, but to see it firsthand was much more unsettling than what I had assumed. But he looked like his normal self again- black hair slicked back perfectly, dark grey waistcoat and a focused expression as his eyes moved across the page of the book he was engrossed in.

“Rose,” he smiled, without even looking up from his book. My heart dropped at the sound of his voice breaking the silence. I took a few careful steps over to the table, and when I was closer, he looked up at me. I pretended not to notice my cheeks flush when his eyes locked onto mine, looking up at me from his chair through dark brows. I struggled to figure out what to say to him, and he watched me with great interest. “You’re afraid of me.”

It wasn’t a question, but an observation. My demeanor and body language must have told more than I wanted him to know, because his brow furrowed into a hard line. It confused me, because he had seemed to want me to be scared when I first arrived. But now, something was different. For a second, I thought he looked like he regretted making me afraid. But he was a vampire, and there was no way that Dracula would feel some sort of compassion for a human being.

“You’ve been drinking my blood…shouldn’t I be afraid?” I replied, my voice wavering.

“Yes, I suppose you should be,” he decided, his gaze lingering on me before he snapped his book closed and adjusted his waistcoat. I swallowed hard, looking awkwardly at my hands.

“Thank you for...for saving me earlier....and for the dress,” I stammered, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. He seemed a bit uncomfortable- like he didn’t know how to respond to being thanked.

“I should have gotten rid of those vermin a long time ago,” he commented. “I should have mentioned not to touch the boxes.”

I had not expected him to be kind like this at all. He had always been so cocky and sarcastic around me, but he was more sincere today.

“It’s me who disturbed them in the first place,” I offered, his black eyes piercing into mine as he offered a small smile. “I thought you’d be angry with me for it.”

“Well, maybe it wasn’t my brightest idea to have you go around cleaning the castle like that…” he trailed off, the corners of his eyes creasing a bit. That hint of a grin somehow took a bit of my fear away.

“So you don’t want me to clean up anymore…” I began. He looked at me, seemingly a bit bemused. “Why are you being nice?”

“I’m not. You just almost got yourself killed on your first try at dusting,” he replied, clearly trying to sound more stern, but I wasn’t buying it.

“Well that’s fine, but...you did save my life. And you gave me this,” I gestured to the gown I wore. “I think you may have a bit of a soft spot.” I smiled a bit then, a genuine smile, and he couldn’t help the corners of his mouth from twitching.

“Your old one was filthy anyway,” he commented, again trying to counter my claim by overcompensating with coldness.

“You got me a glass of water too…” I dared to mention, not looking at him as I arched my brow a bit. I looked at him again, and his eyes met mine in a way that made my heart skip a beat. “I think that you’re not as cruel and evil as you want people to believe.”

He reached for the glass that was resting on the table, no doubt filled with blood (be it mine or someone else’s from his cellar), and lifted it to his lips.

“I’m an undead warlord, Rose. Not exactly a saint,” he scoffed before taking a sip.

I mustered up a bit of courage, and decided to pull back one of the table chairs, and take a seat.

“Then why didn’t you kill me when I arrived?” I countered. “You said there was something special about me...but why keep me here? It’s not like you need anything.”

His eyes looked a bit sad for a fleeting moment as he leaned back in his chair slightly.

“I’ve been trying for centuries to make a bride. Every single time I have failed. Most didn’t last through the change, then there was my last experiment. Johnny did. He came back rather quickly as well,” he chuckled then, his mind somewhere else. “Completely intact mentally- first time I’d made a bride who did that. Before that, I assumed I was the only one who could endure the change without losing my mind as well. When I tasted your blood, I learned that there was a part of you that’s like me, and like Johnny...and that you would almost certainly come out the other side.”

I nodded once, slowly, crossing my arms and resting them on the tabletop.

“But why? Why do you even want me to last the change in the first place?” I pressed, studying his face as I waited for some sort of explanation. “I didn’t ask for eternal life, you know.”

“Neither did I…” he breathed, looking away from my gaze. Then I understood. He wanted me to last the change and be like him because he was completely and utterly alone.

Sparing him the embarrassment of making him admit such a thing out loud, I tried to change the subject.  
“Well, either way, thank you again for saving me from your...friends,” I said with a slight chuckle that got a small smile out of him.

“Are you still afraid of me?” he wondered, his eyes searching mine.

“I...I don’t know,” I told him truthfully. I didn’t know how to feel about him. He was turning me into a vampire against my will, but at the same time, I wanted to get to know him. He was cold, but now he was showing me that he could also be kind. Already, he was the most complicated person I’d ever met.

I thought of how I woke up in that bedroom, how he had cared enough to save me from those creatures at all. How he must have carried me there himself, and went to the trouble to find clean clothing for me. If he didn’t care about me, wouldn’t he have just let me die and found someone else to be his bride?

“Well, you should be,” he decided as a cold expression washed across his features. “I could kill you in a split second if I decided I was bored enough of you.”

“If you wanted to kill me, you would have already. And you wouldn’t have saved my life today,” I countered. “Nobody’s ever done anything like that for me before.”

He looked a bit nervous- the first time I’d seen him that way, as he smiled a bit and looked at me. I think he could tell that I was getting more and more used to the way he was.

“I didn’t want a perfectly good bride to go to waste,” he commented, pretending to be focused on his glass as he traced its detailed carvings with his thumb. But I could tell that he cared more than he was going to admit.

I dared to reach over, softly putting my hand on his forearm that was rested on the tabletop. He looked at where my hand was touching in confusion, before looking up and into my eyes. I think he could tell that I saw through the abrasive wall he was struggling to keep up.

“I’m going to go back to the guest room to go rest, if it’s alright with you that I stay there,” I spoke softly. He merely nodded, seemingly unable to figure out what to say. I squeezed his arm a bit, before standing up and dusting off my gown. “Goodnight, Count Dracula.”


	8. Let Me See You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dracula shows Rose a room in the castle that she hasn't yet seen, and she begins to open up to him.

I had ended up being too wired to fall asleep when I had wanted to, instead lying awake with Dracula’s face constantly pictured in my mind. The way he had looked when he saw that I was afraid of him was the most vulnerable I’d ever seen him. I couldn’t work out why in the world he would care at all, since we didn’t even know each other too well. But then at the same time, he must have learned quite a bit about who I was through my blood, so maybe he really did care.  
I ended up falling asleep hours later, and waking up well past noon. If I kept it up, it wouldn’t be long before I had the same sleep schedule as Dracula. I realized I wouldn’t mind such a thing tho, as I was rather fascinated by him. If I was to spend eternity with a vampire, at least the one I was stuck with had a good sense of humor and seemed to care, at least a little bit.

Since he had decided on rescinding his orders that I clean the castle, I found myself struggling to pass the time before he awoke. I thumbed through the few books in the guest room for a while, wondering if he had any more to read somewhere that I could have a look at. I then decided to try writing a letter to my mother, and to my would-be husband. I wrote that I left because I had no choice, and that I wanted my life to be my own. I wrote that I was safe- which was somewhat false- but I didn’t want to go into details about where I was or who I was with. I also wrote that I loved my mother, and apologized to her and to Thomas that I had no plans to return.

I bit my lip as I read over the letter, running fingers through my hair as I imagined those back home reading it. Maybe contacting anyone, especially fairly soon after I had left, was a bad idea. After all, I didn’t want to end up in a situation where they could come and find me.

It wasn’t long before I found myself squinting in the dim light- the sun had set rather quickly, and I needed to find matches for the oil lamp that was on the desktop. I pulled open the drawer next to me, but it was empty. I went down the next two drawers as well, but no luck.

“Need something?” Dracula’s voice cut through the silence so suddenly that I jumped. I put my hand on my heart as I let out a breath and looked over my shoulder, adjusting my position in the chair slightly. This evening he wore no waistcoat, instead opting for a white shirt with suspenders that matched his dark trousers. I tried not to show on my face that I found it to be quite a good look on him.

“Goodness, you frightened me,” I breathed, making him smile a bit. “I didn’t hear the door open.”

“I’ve been a vampire for centuries, by this point I’ve figured out how to enter a room quietly,” he commented as he took a few steps to close the distance between us. “Now, what is this?”

Before I had the chance to explain, he had snatched up the letter and was peering over it. I worried that it would make him angry, that he would lash out at me for trying to get into contact with people back home, even though I had written nothing of him or my situation at the castle.

“Don’t be angry...I wasn’t trying to leave” I whispered, clenching my teeth as I waited for what he would say. He looked up from the letter, his black gaze meeting mine. He shook his head a bit, setting the paper back onto the tabletop, and crouching down so that he was eye-level with me.

“I know you weren’t,” he breathed quietly. He offered a smile, one that made the corners of his eyes crease up. One that gave me butterflies in my stomach that I wanted desperately to ignore.

“I...I wasn’t even going to send it, actually,” I continued, swallowing hard as I looked into his sparkling eyes. “I don’t want them trying to find me.”

He chuckled then, much to my surprise.

“You’re in a castle with a vampire who drinks your blood, and the one time you write a letter to your loved ones, you decide not to because you *don’t* want to be found?” he laughed again. “You really are something else, Rose.”

“Well, I’d just be right back in the situation that I left in the first place,” I explained, smiling a little at his surprisingly warm demeanor. 

“That you would be,” he agreed, standing up straight and dusting off his trousers. “Now, I need you to come with me. I’ve got something to show you.”

“Should I be worried?” I dared to ask, making him scoff. I stood up and turned to face him, looking up to meet his gaze as he looked down to meet mine.

“Not at all,” he assured me with a small smile. I wondered if he could hear the blood rush to my cheeks when he smiled at me.

I tensed up a bit when he put his large hand in the small of my back, and led me out the bedroom door and into the hallway. All I could focus on was the feeling of his hand on my back, his touch firm yet still gentle as we walked. I stopped in my tracks then, making him look over to me with a furrowed brow. I swallowed nervously, before I shifted to take his hand off of my back. I carefully slid my arm into his, looking up at him for some sort of response or reassurance. But he seemed to be lost for words, his face showing his blatant surprise, before the corners of his mouth hinted at a smile. I let out a shaky breath as we started walking again, thankful that he wasn’t currently making conversation.

He led me through a series of hallways, before we got to a part of the castle I had not yet seen. We were in what looked to be a grand ballroom- one that he must have visited earlier, as the candles were lit and the fire cast flickering shadows across the walls. I imagined the grand balls that might have taken place when Dracula was a human, and what noblemen and royalty must have danced across the same floors where I was now standing.

“Did you ever host balls?” I asked him as we walked through the large room.

“Oh, plenty of them,” he answered. “It was a custom back in my day to do so fairly often.”

“And do you like to dance?” I smiled, looking up at him as we continued our slow meander.

“I used to. I haven’t done so in a very long time, though,” he replied with a twinkle in his eye.

“Maybe you could give me a few pointers,” I considered. “I’m pretty clumsy when it comes to dancing.”

“Well, I think you may want to see something else before we get too sidetracked,” he countered. 

We reached the other side of the ballroom, coming upon a smaller, dimmer hallway that curved around and opened up to reveal a large set of wooden doors. I looked to Dracula curiously, smiling a bit when he offered me a wink before freeing the arm that was linked with mine, and going over to pull open the double doors.

“This is my library,” he said with smooth assuredness. I looked to him once, before stepping through the doorway to see the room. I let out a shaky breath as I got a full glimpse of his collection. The library was huge, with a bright chandelier casting its light down on rows and rows of books. There was even a second level of shelves to explore, with a small spiral staircase against the back wall that provided access to it. There must have been thousands of books spanning centuries of time and from countless parts of the world. It was incredible.

I turned to look at Dracula, who had followed me into the room, and his eyes seemed to have lit up in a spark of joy that I hadn’t seen in them before. I was at a loss for words, and his expression told me that he knew exactly what I was feeling.

I shook my head a bit in disbelief, wondering why he had taken so long to show me such a beautiful place, and one that clearly meant a lot to him.

“I’ve come to know you fairly well through your blood...I figured you would enjoy a place like this,” he explained, and I could tell that he was holding back his excitement. “You like to read, yes?”

I simply nodded, making him chuckle a bit as he took a step closer to me.

“Well, you can take all the time you’d like to look around. Figured you may get bored during the daytime here.”

I didn’t know why, but I realized that my eyes had gotten a bit watery. Here was this vampire that I had been told to fear my entire life, yet in doing this he was being more kind to me than any human I had known. 

“I jus-...,” I tripped over my words and made him laugh again. His was a laugh that I now looked forward to hearing. “You’re just letting me read anything from here?”

“If you’d like to,” he offered, and the lines on his face deepened into a smile that made the butterflies in my stomach start up again. I merely nodded, to which his grin deepened. “I’ve been around for quite a while, so I’ve accumulated a novel or two over the years.”

I chuckled a bit as I broke my gaze from his to look around the room more.

“Have you read them all?” I asked him, peering over a nearby shelf that had more familiar and contemporary works.

“God, no,” he laughed, and the sound echoed through the library as he took a seat on a crimson sofa nearby. “But I’ve read a decent amount. Helps pass the time.”

“Pass the time?” I repeated, looking back over to him. He seemed a bit vexed as I went over and sat down beside him. “You have eternal life...how could time even matter?”

That rare sadness passed through his eyes again, one I’d only seen for a brief moment the last time the topic of immortality had come up.

“It doesn’t matter…” he agreed. “But it does to everyone else. It’s easier to live outside of time when you don’t have to see it passing for other people.”

This fired off an array of questions in my head. Did this mean he had cared for humans before? Was this why he was so adamant about trying to make a bride? Was this why he lived in isolation?

“That sounds...terribly lonely,” I decided, my brow furrowing. I looked at him then, really looked this time. “That’s why you make people think you’re evil and cruel. It’s easier to push them away than to let them in when you can’t die but the whole world can.”

He clenched his jaw a bit and looked away- I don’t think he’d ever been confronted with the idea of who he was outside of his own mind.

“But you’ve let me in, haven’t you?” I asked, my voice somewhat quiet. He looked at me with an expression that was somewhat defensive then.

“You are a prisoner here, and I am slowly draining your blood. Making you into a vampire, even. What about that says that I’ve let you in?” he shot back, and it hurt more than it should have. But I knew he was just trying to push me away. If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t have looked at me like he did when we first came into the library.

I said nothing- he couldn’t change the fact that I was coming to know him. I probably knew more about him than anyone had in a very long time, and I think that vulnerability was what made him lash out like he had.

“I’m a vampire, you’re the blood. The end,” he growled, but I think he was reassuring himself more than he was saying it to me. His frustration grew when he saw that I still wasn’t buying it, so he took it fifty steps further. He suddenly grabbed me by my hair, yanking my head to the side, and plunged sharp fangs into my neck.

I gasped at the pain, my eyes wide in shock, before the pain started to numb. He had never done this when I was awake, save for the night he found me in the castle. He moaned to himself as he drank, and I found myself clinging to his shoulder as I struggled to breathe evenly. He had wrapped his arms around me to hold me closer, and his grip was tight.

But I wasn’t letting him win so easily. I relaxed my grip on his shoulder, and brought my hand to the back of his neck. This made him stop his steady rhythm of drinking for a moment.

“Let me see you,” I whispered breathlessly, a bit lightheaded.

He was still at first- he had probably assumed that I was unconscious already. But he slowly sat up a bit until he was in a place where I could see his face properly. He looked the way he had the other night, his eyes bright red and his teeth pointed, blood staining his lips. I could tell that he was struggling to keep any composure and not drink again. I slowly, slowly brought my hand to his cheek. He flinched at the touch, his red eyes wide as they stared into mine. I don't think he'd ever been so vulnerable around me, despite clearly having the upper hand. He seemed unsure of himself in that moment- afraid, even, of what I would do upon seeing him in such a state.

"It's alright..." I trailed off, my voice barely audible. His breathing was shaky as he continued to look at me without blinking, and I slowly brushed my thumb across his cheek. I gave him a small nod of reassurance as I slid my hand back to his neck, and he finally sunk his teeth in once more. I could feel myself losing consciousness as I threaded my fingers into his hair and held his head against me. He groaned a bit at my touch as he drank, and I let my eyes close as I focused on his rhythmic movement, until at last I drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry that its been so long since the last update! This chapter is a bit all over the place, but I had a lot that I wanted to include- hopefully you all enjoy it!


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